A New Year's Message from CAMA President Bev Hendry

A Happy New Year to all our members! I hope that you were all able to have a restful holiday. I would like to take this opportunity to provide you with a brief overview of what will be coming your way during the month of January. Watch for more details on the following CAMA programs and services:

Launch of CAMA's New CAO Performance Evaluation Toolkit. CAMA understands the challenges that both staff and Council face in conducting performance evaluations. The new updated and improved 2023 edition, which is flexible and customizable, will arrive in your inbox this week. Guides are available for the CAO and the Mayor and Council to help define the roles, and to create a process to hold open conversations to assist in achieving a collective vision, and reaching strategic goals for the success of the organization and the community. Also included is a sample performance evaluation template without a rating system focusing on the specific annual Council and CAO goals, and a sample mandate letter. It is equally important for you (the CAO or senior manager) to conduct a performance evaluation review for your employees, so a sample template and mandate letter are also included for this process.

Membership Renewals. You will be receiving your membership renewal for the April 1, 2023 to March 31, 2024 fiscal year by e-mail in the next two weeks. The deadline for payment is March 31, 2023 and you can do so by renewing it on line and paying by Visa or Mastercard, doing a direct deposit, or sending a cheque to the CAMA National Office.

Membership Promotion to Staff and Colleagues. CAMA also offers 50% off our already great value membership fees for the first year, and are based on the population for the Primary Member, and are currently just $155.00 for any additional members in your municipality. Think of which neighbouring local government leaders would benefit from access to CAMA`s resources or who in your organization is ready for leadership development. They can click here for the on-line registration link. 

2022 CAMA Awards of Excellence. The call for nominations and on-line registration forms for CAMA’s Awards of Excellence will be available later this week with the deadline being February 13, 2023. All members will receive a direct e-mail with the details.

Long Service Recognition Awards. CAMA's Long Service Recognition Awards Program recognizes and celebrates CAMA members’ dedication to public service and municipal management. These awards are based on the number of years of full-time, paid employment in municipal government in a management capacity (a Chief Administrative Officer or reporting directly to a Chief Administrative Officer). They are granted at ten years and given in five year increments and presented each Spring. The 10 and 15 year awards are mailed and the 20+ year awards are presented at the Annual Conference.  How do you know if you are to receive an award? Staff will be generating a list of members whose records indicate that they will be eligible for service awards this year.  You will be contacted in late January/early February by e-mail if you are receiving an award.



CAMA Honourary for Life Membership. The Honorary Life Membership in CAMA is an honour presented to long serving CAMA members who have made an extraordinary contribution to the field of municipal administration and to the work of the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators (CAMA). The nomination forms are available now on the website with a deadline of January 31, 2023.

2023 CAMA Conference - May 29-31 2023 at the Deerhurst Resort, Ontario. Get ready to register for the 49th Annual CAMA Conference when the program and on-line registration are launched at the end of January 2023. You won't want to miss out on this event, which will be the best Conference yet! There are still a few hotel rooms left at the Deerhurst Resort. All information can be found on the Conference website.

If you have any questions on any of the above-noted programs and services, please contact Jennifer Goodine, CAMA Executive Director at 1-866-771-2262 or admin@camacam.ca.

On behalf of my fellow Board members and staff, I wish you and your family a safe and prosperous 2023.

We hope that you will continue to support our Association and the municipal profession and find value in your membership. See you in the Muskokas!

Bev Hendry

CAMA President

Free Virtual National Webinar Hosted by HotSpot Parking

"Digital-First Parking: Proven Results One Year On"

Thursday, January 26, 2023 / 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. EST

Speaker:  Phillip Curley, Head of HotSpot

Who Can Attend this Webinar? CAMA Members, Their Employees, and Elected Officials. Non-Members are also welcome to attend.

Who Will Benefit from this Webinar? CAO's, Clerks, and By-law, Finance and Economic Development Department Employees.

Registration Cost:  FREE but registration at this link.  

One year since we presented to CAMA about Digital-First Parking Programs, they continue to prove the highest return on investment. Whether creating a new revenue stream, expanding an existing program, or simply reducing hardware upgrades, digital parking solutions are solving these problems with very little expenditure. Since last year, HotSpot's approach to digital-first parking has seen success in multiple municipalities across Canada. For example, saving the City of Saint John approximately $24,000 in expensive EMV hardware upgrades; and Pickering Ontario saved approximately $700,000 in parking infrastructure, while processing over thousands of transactions this summer.

Following 2022's CAMA webinar hosted with HotSpot and Jasper, Head of HotSpot Parking, Phillip Curley returns to share another experience and lessons learned. Alongside our partner's Teresa Olsen, County Clerk, and Jim Millson, Supervisor of By-Law, from Norfolk County, Ontario. Norfolk County's popular beaches are a tourist haven for residents around the GTA. Norfolk initiated a digital-first pilot program to create new revenue, manage demand, and recoup funds for the infrastructure being used. Join us to talk numbers, highs, lows, considerations, Council, and how digital solutions can adapt to all parking scenarios.

For more information click here.

CAMA Seeking Member Municipalities to Speak at the 2023 CAMA Conference

(May 29-31, 2023 - Deerhurst Resort, ON)

“Innovative Best Practices for Building Capacity and Community Resilience in the Face of a Changing Climate”

The CAMA Conference strives to provide exceptional experiences and value to attendees. To that end, the Program Sub-Committee are seeking panelists for a session entitled “Innovative Best Practices for Building Capacity and Community Resilience in the Face of a Changing Climate”.  

Session Description

The impacts of changing climate are evident in Canada, and local governments have a unique and critical role to play in managing the risks. While all levels of government have important adaptation responsibilities, municipalities are often on the front line to ensure the risks are managed effectively and the community is safe. Municipalities of all sizes face many new risks and opportunities, and anticipating the effects of climate change and taking actions before major impacts occur is an effective strategy to manage climate risk and reduce a community’s overall vulnerability. This will also result in lower long-term costs and to be more effective. Adaptation involves making changes in decisions, activities, and thinking in response to observed or expected changes in climate.

This session will provide CAOs and senior managers with information to help them understand the need for climate change adaptation, and how to plan ahead with your teams, and put adaptation measures in place.  It will illustrate how municipalities of varying sizes from across the country are developing plans, the measures they have adopted, and lessons learned.

Invitation to Submit A Proposal

Do you have stories and/or actionable real-life examples that showcase innovative best practices in climate adaptability, how to prepare for the future, and that attendees can take back and implement in their own communities? CAMA member municipalities are invited to submit their proposals outlining their best practices, and the bio of the speaker (maximum one page).

The deadline for proposals is Wednesday, January 11, 2023. All proposals will be reviewed by the 2023 Conference Program Sub-Committee and selections will be made based on the speakers’ knowledge and experience on the topic. The Committee will also consider diversity on the panel with representation from across the country and from different size municipalities.

This breakout session will take place on Tuesday, May 30^th, 2023 from 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. EST. Please note that speakers will be responsible for their expenses including registration, airfare, hotel accommodations, and any other travel costs.

For further information, please contact Jennifer Goodine at admin@camacam.ca or 1-866-771-2262.

WELCOME TO OUR NEW BUSINESS PARTER

KTI Limited offers a full-suite of water metering products and solutions to fit the needs and challenges of all water utilities. From residential & commercial water meters to installation services & project management, to everything beyond the meter with Sensus FlexNet AMI (Advanced Metering Infrastructure). To contact us visit the CAMA website.

Queensland Local Government Invites Canadian Local Government Managers to Participate in a Manager Exchange

In 2023, Local Government Managers Australia Queensland Inc. (LGMA) in cooperation with CAMA invites a Canadian local government manager to participate in an exchange. 

LGMA and CAMA will each select a senior local government officer to host their counterpart in their local communities and vice versa, at the same time as their Annual Conferences.

The Canadian Manager will visit the Sunshine Coast (Queensland) and attend the LGMA Annual Conference held from August 29-31, 2023 at the Events Centre Caloundra. Sunshine Coast is located north of the centre of Brisbane in Southeast Queensland, on the Coral Sea coastline, with an urban population of approximately 400,000. They will also spend a week with the host in the host’s hometown, staying in their home and participating in daily life. During this time, they will have the opportunity to visit the Council and learn about Queensland local government; policies, practices, innovations and challenges. This visit will be tailored to the managers own areas of interest to ensure maximized learning.

In return, the Canadian Manager will host the Australian Manager when they visit Canada to attend the CAMA Conference from May 29-31, 2023 at the Deerhurst Resort in Ontario. They will spend a week, either immediately before or immediately after the Conference, hosted in the home and participating in daily life as described above.

This program is a unique opportunity to learn about local government and broaden knowledge of different approaches that have been applied. The Exchange has been running successfully between Australia, California and New Zealand for over a decade and the learnings during that time have been significant. Exchangees have brought back to their countries new ideas and suggestions. At the same time, they have formed life-long friendships, often returning to visit.

The Local Government Managers Australia (LGMA) will provide a complimentary registration and hotel costs (during the event) to attend their Conference in August 2023. All other travel costs (airfare, hotel, etc.) are your responsibility.

If you are interested in applying for this exchange opportunity please contact Jennifer Goodine, CAMA Executive Director at admin@camacam.ca. for an information package and an application form. The deadline for applications is January 31, 2023.